Natural Health Breakthrough

Bernice Butler

I’m excited by this month’s feature article, “Healing the Hard Stuff: Natural Approaches Resolve Major Illnesses,” by Linda Sechrist. The experts interviewed make a solid case for choosing natural care first, rather than defaulting to drugs and surgery. We learn why permanently resolving root causes of disease is far better than appeasing symptoms.

Preparing our May issue has afforded me opportunities to talk with others about their own experiences and successes with natural healing. A near-unanimous theme voiced by local integrative and complementary medicine practitioners is that people most often come to them for help as a last resort, when conventional prescription medications have failed to make them feel better or mitigate their condition or symptoms. When doctors can’t determine a cause, they recommend long-term medications to mask the symptoms.

The first thing natural health practitioners will recommend for any condition is eating healthy food, a clean, toxin-free, nutrient-dense, primarily plant-based diet. This alone routinely makes a big difference.

I recently attended a screening of the film Game Changers, director by Oscar-winner Louis Psihoyos, who also directed Racing Extinction. It looks at how plant-based diets affect the performance and success of elite athletes. Backed by a chorus of scientific voices and evidence, it reveals benefits of decreased injuries and recovery time, as well as increases in speed, stamina, energy and performance. Measurable results can come quickly.

At our area’s annual Earth Day expo’s EarthX film festival, I spoke with Psihoyos, actor James Wilkes, a mixed martial arts enthusiast, and record-holding weightlifter Kendrick Farris, and witnessed their Q&A session with the audience. Even my daughter perked up, and we both left the event committed to eat more plants and animal products. The next night, at an Earthx Global Gala, I experienced a four-course vegan meal that convinced me vegan can be tasty. As a bonus, I ate more than I should have, but didn’t feel stuffed and lethargic afterward.

It’s all been a game-changer for me. I find myself evaluating every food choice and gently gravitating toward more natural, plant-based offerings. My rewards include greater energy and fewer aches and pains.

Our May issue is chock full of information from leaders in the field of natural medicine, as well as ordinary folks that have experienced its healing power. Sechrist’s Healing Ways department “Personalized Medicine” and April Thompson’s interview with actress Kelly Noonan-Gores, “How We Shape Our Health” covering mental, emotional and spiritual variables, are both eye-opening.

Overall, you may find yourself wanting to do better and try things that have worked well for others because they are simple, accessible, easy to do and promise a more healthy and vibrant life. We even share tips on how to minimize the health effects of Texas’ peak summer ozone season. I hope you are receiving value each month from Natural Awakenings in the shape of enhanced well-being born of new-found knowledge.

Everybody knows that September means fall is coming. But here in Texas, when we begin reading and hearing about the State Fair of Texas—affectionately called “The Fair”—that’s when we really know fall is on its way.